By Marina Brierley Last February I had the privilege of attending a Liberty and Entrepreneurship camp in Uganda. Such an inspirational event – to meet so many ambitious, thoughtful young people interested and hungry for the ideas of Liberty. Many were from the University of Kisubi, near Kampala, where the event was held, but some from other Universities and a few even came from Kenya. Mugabi John Socrates (from ALED – Action for Liberty and Economic Development) and Adedayo Thomas were our dedicated hosts and organisers. The Vice Chancellor welcomed us warmly, sympathetic to the ideas of freedom and prosperity that seemed to be popular in this successful private university. The theme of the ‘camp’ was “Free Enterprise and Morality” – so vital to show that there is an inherent link between both concepts. Talks by Andy on ‘Why freedom? Principles of the Free market’, ‘10 technologies that will change the world’ and ‘Essentials of Entrepreneurship’ were enthusiastically received. Adedayo spoke on ‘The Foundations of Africa’s Economy and political freedom’ with considerable passion and flair. I contributed with a talk on ‘Education in the developing world’ which led to some discussion on the situation in Uganda and concluded with a talk on ‘Human Progress’ showing the amazing achievements that have been accomplished in the world where-ever and whenever free trade and entrepreneurship were allowed to flourish. Travelling around the country in the days prior to the camp (through Kampala and to Northern Uganda for a safari I could not resist) I had observed the land and its people. A congenial climate, fertile soil, in parts lush natural habitat but above all, a young, aspiring population eager to make their mark in the world. So much raw potential! Through discussion with new friends I learned that many had long since …
Announcing the Inaugural South East Asia Students For Liberty Conference!
Having had tremendous success across the globe, Students For Liberty first dropped anchor in South East Asia in 2015. After a year of inspiring, motivating, and educating students, the time and opportunity is now here for our first South East Asia Conference. This is a huge opportunity for SFL Indonesia in the current phase of their movement. They started small (with less than three Charter Team members) and now have over 20 students working to put this conference together. Sessions aim to give attendees a deeper understanding of the ideas of liberty. They are also focused on training attendees to be more effective advocates of liberty. We have put together a distinguished roster of speakers who have, in various ways, helped advance the vision of a free and prosperous society. These role models will inspire you, influence your ideas, and potentially become your mentors moving forward. The goal of this conference is to bring students from all over South East Asia to exchange their experiences, learn the ideas of liberty and energize their leadership of the pro-liberty movement in South East Asia. This event will be a massive celebration of freedom. Featured Speakers Tom G. Palmer Tom Palmer is the executive vice president for international programs at the Atlas Network and a senior fellow at the Cato Institute and director of Cato University. He received his doctorate in politics from Oxford University. He frequently lectures in North America, Europe, Eurasia, Africa, Latin America, India, Asia, and the Middle East on political science, public choice, civil society, and the moral, legal, and historical foundations of individual rights. He has published reviews and articles on politics and morality in scholarly journals such as the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy, as well as in publications such as the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, and …
CYCLE 2015
Are you joining us at the CYCLE 2015 free online conference? CYCLE 2015 is hosted by our friends at Liberty.me, and the participation is completely free of any charge or cost, and fully accessible to anyone in the world who can access the internet and wants to learn. Our goal is to help young people of all ages achieve success in their lives as well as to become creative forces for good in our world. Visit CYCLE 15 for this year’s program and registration details. Speakers and topics are still being finalized, but here are some of the great teachers we’ve already got lined up: Doug Casey: Best-selling author, world-famous investor, co-founder of Casey Research. Doug Casey is the original “International Man,” a pioneer in the field of minimizing loss of freedom through international diversification—of self as well as assets. Rick Rule: Billionaire entrepreneur and investor. Rick is one of the sharpest businessmen we know, having created or invested in hundreds, if not thousands of new ventures, amassing huge fortunes along the way—twice. T.K. Coleman: Philosopher, writer, lecturer, entrepreneur, and life coach. T.K. is the Education Director for Praxis, an experience-based alternative to traditional business school, and he blogs daily on self-determinism, creativity, and philosophy at tkcoleman.com. Lobo Tiggre: CYCLE founder, author, entrepreneur, investor, youth counselor. “Papa Lobo” has inspired hundreds of students over the years, many of whom have gone on to create companies of their own or find success in other walks of Life. Tom Palmer: Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute, director of Cato University, Vice President for International Programs at the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, VP of the Atlas Network. Tom is one smart guy, and an inspiring speaker. Jeffrey Tucker: CEO of Liberty.me, previously editor of Mises.org, adjunct scholar of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy …
Liberty Entrepreneurship Camp in India
This report is posted by Venkatesh Geriti This is Venkatesh Geriti, Founder and C.E.O of India’s Future Foundation, a free market educational foundation who mission is to educate, train and connect young people who believe ideas of free markets, entrepreneurship and limited government. I had great days during this summer with lot of libertarian programs such as Foundation for Economic education summer seminars, the independent institute’s challenge of liberty seminars, Acton University in USA, International Society for Individual Liberty World Conference on Market Liberalization in Bail and Liberty Entrepreneurship Camp by our organization. This is best and most productive libertarian summer in my life and I was happy to end it with our first Liberty Entrepreneurship Camp successfully in Vishakhapatnam, India from 8th July – 12th July 2015. Liberty Entrepreneurship Camp is a five day workshop promoting the moral and ethical dimensions of entrepreneurship and educating young people about economic freedom, free markets and classical liberal ideas. The liberty camp was jointly organized by India’s Future foundation and the Language of Liberty Institute (USA) in Vizag, India from 8th to 12th July 2015 with 30 students. The main purpose of this program is to help young people explore alternative ideas for existing problems; to help young people understand the value of entrepreneurship, free markets and limited government. Language of Liberty Institute speakers who had great experiences within economics, business, entrepreneurship and politics and introduced the principles of classical liberalism, free and competitive markets to participants. Local Indian speakers who are experts in ideas of free market in local context explained the need for free market ideas. The Camp combined lectures, discussions and workshops as speakers presented various topics such as the roots of classical liberalism. The first day we started with an introduction of the liberty camp and the activities of Language of Liberty Institute and …
RESEARCHING REALITY INTERNSHIP 2015
Researching Reality Internship in New Delhi is for college students and researchers who wish to apply social and economic principles to real-life problems through in-depth research projects. It provides interns with valuable training in areas of research, analysis, writing, and above all critical thinking. For more information, click here. The internship is open during a summer and also a non-summer period. “CCS gave me a golden opportunity to work on ‘Business Planning for Schools’. In the process, I gained knowledge on current system of setting up and operating a school in Delhi. I met such amazing people and gathered a lot of information from them, both related to my project as well as general economics. I have realized that researching, conducting a survey/field work is no child’s play. I am grateful to CCS for this eye-opening and learning experience.” Mallika Chawla Intern, 2006 “It is wonderful to see the youth participate in such programs. Let me know what you are looking forward to in the next couple of years because it will be of great help to me. Encouragement is what I get when I know there are people interested and thinking about better governance.” Shiela Dikshit, Hon’ Chief Minister of Delhi at a special meeting with CCS interns, 18 May 2009 “The internship introduced me to the field of policy research and the structure of the program where every intern is assigned a guide was wonderful. The entire CCS teams, co-interns and others provided a lively respectful and friendly environment to work in and was a great learning experience. Thank you for this wonderful opportunity.” Vrinda Aggarwal Summer Internship Researching Reality summer internship is a fulltime internship that spans a course of two-months between May and July. The summer internship is open to up to 25 …
Language of Liberty’s Brazil Tour Continues
For the first weekend seminar the Brazil Liberty Team returned to Porto Alegre for the third consecutive time, where we were joined by Roberto Rachewsky of the Millennium Institute, Diogo Costa of Ibmec and University of Iceland professor Hannes Gissurarson. The event was hosted by Instituto de Estudos em Gestão Empresarial (IEGE) and organized by Clube Miss Rand, a student group started as late as last January that already attracts more than 40 liberty enthusiasts to their weekly meetings. With topics ranging from the importance of language to education and economic freedom, and from the drug war to entrepreneurship and how modern technology can advance the cause of liberty, the presentations were very well received. They also stimulated lively discussions with all attendees after the speeches and during the breaks. The seminar brought together a truly international team of speakers from different backgrounds, so that everyone in the audience likely could identify with at least one of them and their passions. We hope to be back again! The last weekend of May brought the expanded Brazil Liberty Team to Curitiba, capital and largest city of the state of Paraná. The seventh largest city of Brazil, Curitiba is home to 1.8 million people and over 3 million in the wider metropolitan area. In 2009 Reader’s Digest named Curitiba the best city to live in Brazil. The city’s modern transportation system, buildings and shopping streets give it quite a European feel. The seminar was organized by the local student group Grupo de Estudos Liberalismo e Democracia (GELD), which started last September with Saturday morning meetings and just four people in attendance, yet now has some forty members and continues to grow. Diogo Costa was not with us for this event but the audience was treated to his Ibmec colleague Adriano Gianturco’s insights …
Truant in America
Have you ever heard of anybody who never went to school? No, I don’t mean ‘home schooled’. I’m talking about no school at all. No curriculum. No home school course. No online accredited program. Never went to Kindergarten, or any other grade. In America, that is rare, because education is compulsory. Kids are forced by law to go to school. Christian’s mom learned that lesson well. She said when Christian was six years old, “They came out with a police officer, and wanted to inspect the home environment. We eventually moved out of the state because of it . . . because they wanted him to be tested, and they wanted this, and that . . .” “They were going to get him?” I asked. “Yeah. They were going to reel him into the system. I said, ‘That’s not happening!’” The family fled to Hawaii, where it was easier to hide a kid from the truancy laws. After all, how could anyone distinguish a truant kid from a tourist kid? It was the perfect plan. “My parents were upfront with me,” Christian said, “It’s like, ‘You’re supposed to be in school. But we’re not going to make you do it. So, if you don’t want to school, you should keep your mouth shut about it.’” Christian Regan, now 22 years old, has never gone to school in his life. Yet, you would never know by meeting him. He reads more than most adults. Christian’s dad said, “He basically taught himself how to read. There was no ‘A is Ahh, B is Buhh’. We would just read books to him. He’d watch us reading him books, and before long, he was reading them instead of us.” Christian learned to read and write when he was only five years old. “I remember …
Language of Liberty tours Southern Brazil
On Tuesday morning our Liberty Team left the city of Porto Alegre, capital of Rio Grande do Sul, the southernmost state in Brazil. After a 5-hour bus ride we arrived in the city of Rio Grande, one of the country’s busiest maritime ports. For our wonderful hosts’ group Clube Atlântico, founded about 6 months ago, it was the first time they received international guests. Nonetheless, thanks especially to the efforts of Camilla, Eduardo, Heber and Everson we felt so welcome and comfortable it was like meeting old friends! In a city known for its strong unions related to the port and city, the group has encountered aggressive opposition from left-leaning (student) groups. Though such groups apparently don’t shy away from vandalizing property in order to make a point, the Liberty Seminar was not interrupted by a confrontation. After a word of welcome from Clube Atlântico’s president Henrique, Glenn introduced the Language of Liberty Institute to the audience followed by Patrick’s empowering speech about educational alternatives and homeschooling, and a talk on marketing liberty by Mart. After the break the attendees were treated to an eloquent presentation by CATO’s Latin America expert Juan Carlos Hidalgo on how economic freedom leads to economic growth and betters people’s lives. The 35 students that attended the seminar, hailing from all over Brazil, left feeling encouraged and inspired to redouble their efforts for the cause of liberty. During the post-event dinner with our new friends we were told that the event had also attracted new members to the group. Encountering the sort of opposition we saw in Rio Grande was a new experience even after organizing over 40 programs all over the world, including many former Soviet countries. Still, it is easy to see the amazing opportunity in the city considering the port and the …
Malta: Speaking the Language of Liberty
[alert style=”green”] This was reposted from Mart’s blog The Raw Report, you can view the original article here. [/alert] To anyone who has not lived in a cave in recent years it is clear that libertarianism is gathering momentum and becoming more mainstream. Consequently, those of us who care about liberty should expect to get many questions from “outsiders” about what we stand for. Plenty of misconceptions and objections will need to be addressed as well as questions answered. Attending a Liberty Camp organized by the Language of Liberty Institute (LLI) can give you the arrows you’ll need in your quiver to do just that. Attendees at last week’s Liberty English Camp on the Mediterranean island of Malta can attest to its benefits. Co-organizer Jacek Spendel of the Freedom and Entrepreneurship Foundation helped gather nearly fifty people of thirteen different nationalities, representing a larger than usual turnout for a Liberty Camp. They learned a lot from many different speakers about why liberty matters, the origin of rights, the war on drugs, seasteading, the difference between real and crony capitalism (from a Wall Street insider, no less), why Estonia attracts a lot of foreign investment, starting the revolution, the European Union, and how to set up an independent Civil Society Organization (CSO). Another highlight was hearing from four Ukrainian students about what is currently going on in their country and cities, and how that affects the advancement of the ideas of liberty there. In addition we were entertained by movies and documentaries, not to mention social events and a talent show to top it all off! Liberty Camps are generally held in the countryside of developing nations all over the world, so the small island of Malta provided a slightly different experience. Compared to most seminars or conferences, though, the common …
“Why is there no sex in Bosnian government departments?”
Language of Liberty Institute (LLI) returned to Bosnia for our first events of 2014. Bosnia was the location of our last event for 2013 in December, but while we had a Liberty Seminar in the capital Sarajevo then, this time we held seminars in two country towns, Tuzla and Zenica, the location of our two Bosnian partners in spreading liberty, MULTI in Tuzla, run by Admir Čavalić, and the Center for the Advancement of Free Enterprise (CAFE) in Zenica, run by Edo Omerčević. Incidentally, a few weeks ago, Tuzla was the location of the first major uprising against the government of Bosnia. Whilst overshadowed by the event in the Ukraine, it was significant for Bosnia as the anger, frustration and dissatisfaction with the government spilled over into the streets of several cities in Bosnia, including the capital. This could be a “wakeup-call” for the government, although it is still too early to judge. The trigger for the Tuzla uprising (which became the trigger for the demonstrations that followed) was the loss of jobs by employees of former state enterprises that had been privatized and given to friends and relatives of the ruling elite. With no experience or competence to run the businesses, the new owners stripped the companies of their assets (for some quick and easy cash) and then let the companies fail and go into bankruptcy, causing the loss of jobs and the anger of the affected employees who have now joined the ever-growing ranks of unemployed in Bosnia. The Tuzla demonstration was followed by protests in other parts of Bosnia, including Zenica and the capital, to display the general anger and dissatisfaction of the population with a government marked by nepotism, cronyism, corruption and incompetence. A joke making the rounds in Bosnia, and even the world, is typical …
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